An Oklahoma state senator from Edmond plans to introduce legislation to prohibit people from forming anonymous trusts after learning they have won a lottery prize.
Sen. Clark Jolley, R-Edmond, said this proposed legislation stems from instances including one this week where a trust claimed a lottery prize.
"We were told the lottery would be open, it would be transparent — full accountability. We would know the name and towns of everyone who had won," Jolley said. "I think winners being anonymous trusts instead of real people causes problems with both accountability and trust of the lottery."
Deadbeat dads who owe thousands of dollars in child support could avoid paying it if they won the lottery and created a trust, Jolley said.
People also could avoid paying taxes on the prize, Jolley said.
However, the state Lottery Commission collects federal and state taxes on any lottery prize over $5,000, said Beverly Hughes, the commission's director of sales and marketing.
A trust claimed a $400,000 Powerball prize Wednesday but didn't have all the paperwork to collect the prize money.
The needed paperwork was a copy of the original trust agreement, Hughes said.
The trust is going to send that information to the Lottery Commission, she said.
A trust that wins a lottery prize must provide the Lottery Commission with a claim form, a tax identification number and a copy of the original trust agreement, Hughes said.
The lottery commission collects 25 percent in federal taxes and 4 percent in state taxes from every prize over $5,000, Hughes said.
Hughes said she thinks people form a trust to protect their privacy after winning a lottery prize.
She declined to comment on Jolley's proposal.
Jolley said his legislation would allow a trust to collect lottery winnings if it can show that it bought the lottery ticket.
This can be done by having a copy of the check or debit card that was used to purchase lottery tickets, he said.
His proposed legislation will be introduced for consideration in the legislative session that begins next year.
I think its a good thing ...you should have your name and town posted up online. It gives other people the hope that one day it will be them getting all the phone calls from long lost relatives... friends and whoever else that might feel the urge to call you ask for that small personal loan. Its the rockstar status we all want, show me the winning ticket and i'll deal with everything else that comes with it later. thanks
I think that all states should allow lottery winners their anonymity. I would have major reservations about having my name and winnings posted somewhere for everyone to see. Buuuutttt....If that's what is required to receive the money, I guess I would have to accept having my name out there....right before moving out of town....
Quote: Originally posted by Skylaquisha on Oct 6, 2006
I think that all states should allow lottery winners their anonymity. I would have major reservations about having my name and winnings posted somewhere for everyone to see. Buuuutttt....If that's what is required to receive the money, I guess I would have to accept having my name out there....right before moving out of town....
I totally disagree. I think winners should be named, photos taken, home phone numbers published, addresses given out, and maps to their home distributed along the highway as well as that 10 foot tall bull's eye they tack on your house after you won the lottory. Just the bull's eye alone is not getting the job done. People are still claiming jackpots.
Quote: Originally posted by GASMETERGUY on Oct 6, 2006
I totally disagree. I think winners should be named, photos taken, home phone numbers published, addresses given out, and maps to their home distributed along the highway as well as that 10 foot tall bull's eye they tack on your house after you won the lottory. Just the bull's eye alone is not getting the job done. People are still claiming jackpots.
I personally can't wait for the issue to be resolved once and for all. Eventually a winner will warn the lottery not to release his/her name for security reasons, the lottery will refuse and the winner dies or is seriously injured. The lawsuit resulting from such an act will cause the estate of the winner to have more to give out and give a wake up call to lotteries exposing winners to potential crime.
Winners should always have the final say in how monies should be distributed not the state.
This can be done by having a copy of the check or debit card that was used to purchase lottery tickets, he said.
Are there any states that allow you to buy lottery tickets with a check?
wpb
Exactly. This is just another example of what can happen when someone who is absolutely clueless gets involved in something they have no business being involved in.
I think anyone and everyone has to right to remain anonymous if they win the jackpot. Not everyone wants that "rockstar status" that wreakshavock mentioned. I'd want to walk around with a big bankroll and have people in awe and "wonder" what the heck I do for a living, and how I got my money. I don't want a soul knowing how much I have in my bank account. It's no one's business!!!
Perhaps the government and the state should do a "background check" when they're taking out taxes to make sure someone doesn't owe backtaxes or child support. I don't agree with the person's name, address, photo and any relavant information given out to the public. Just because the person has money now doesn't mean the world needs to know.
MORNING PEOPLE : i agree with surge , there must be a way that you can remain anonymous to the public safety, while i understand that some people might owe thousands in child support, i feel that the lottery commission should know who they are paying this money to, they should be able to do a proper background check on people, i feel if you make a winners name public you are also makeing a way for them to be victums to crimes , just remember mr senator , it could be you or your family who win some money , do you want to be a target ? IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU ."
"Deadbeat dads who owe thousands of dollars in child support could avoid paying it if they won the lottery and created a trust, Jolley said."
Lottery winners might be illegal drug users, cheats and sneaks too, I say slap on a rubber glove and do a strip search. In addition to the bullseye on the house and the billboards on the interstate with detailed directions to the winners house. Yes, the public would feel so much better about the lottery then Mr. Jolley. Good to see you're not wasting time and taxpayer money in the Okla. legislature. If that's the biggest problem in Oklahoma now, the anonymity of the many millions of lottery winners, then I just may have to consider moving there.
This can be done by having a copy of the check or debit card that was used to purchase lottery tickets, he said.
Are there any states that allow you to buy lottery tickets with a check?
I'm guessing that the statement is the result of a stupid politician meaning that it would be okay for a trust to claim a prize if the trust was formed before the ticket was purchased. The article suggests that his issue is with people forming a trust specifically to claim a prize they have already won. Since trusts and corporations are already legal entities they have the right to buy and own lottery tickets, as well as other property. Of course that begs the question of what his legislation would require as proof that individuals had bought and legally own the tickets they were submitting to claim prizes. As a side note, I'm sure the lottery agents will be thrilled that their records not only have to note that the check or debit card was used to buy a lottery ticket, but will also have to note *which* lottery ticket was bought.
As far as keeping the lottery honest and collecting child support from deadbeat parents, there's no reason the rules couldn't require a check of the individuals who hold the ticket while still keeping their names and other personal information private. I believe some states already do this, as I'm pretty sure I recall stories about winners who apparently didn't form a trust but still remained anonymous. Perhaps Jolley should submit a bill that makes it illegal, and sets the penalties, for any lottery employee to disclose information that is supposed to be confidential.
The law that allows trusts to be created is federal, not state. Another attempt by a hick state legislator to get some ink with a crazy press release.
The only law change that would help lotteries is to exempt lottery winners from state ,and especially, federal taxes. The amount of new people playing the lottery would greatly offset the slight amount of revenue lost.
Quote: Originally posted by tmcdill on Oct 9, 2006
The law that allows trusts to be created is federal, not state. Another attempt by a hick state legislator to get some ink with a crazy press release.
The only law change that would help lotteries is to exempt lottery winners from state ,and especially, federal taxes. The amount of new people playing the lottery would greatly offset the slight amount of revenue lost.
The Delaware Lottery, while allowing anonymous winners, will keep after tax winnings if you have a state judgement against you for back taxes or child support.
If that law passes I say boycott Oklahoma's lottery. That will be easy for me because I don't live anywhere near it. Proposals like this make me want to .
The Delaware Lottery, while allowing anonymous winners, will keep after tax winnings if you have a state judgement against you for back taxes or child support.
If that law passes I say boycott Oklahoma's lottery. That will be easy for me because I don't live anywhere near it. Proposals like this make me want to .
In Delaware, the lottery knows the identity of the winner, but keeps it anomymous. If a trust is created for the lottery winner, the trust official walks into the lottery office on the winner's behalf, and the lottery pays to the trust, which is a legal entity like a corporation. The lottery office has no idea who the actual winner is.....as for legal purposes, it's the trust that's been created.
I believe Delaware and Kansas are the only 2 states that I've heard of that allow winners to remain anomymous.
tmcdill...there is a third state that allows winners to remain anomymous, Maryland. This occured with a Mega Millions jackpot winner from July of this year.
As far as trusts are concerned, I think there are a few states where you can use this method to keep a winners identity secret: New Hampshire, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma (for now) and Pennsylvania. I gathered some of this information from the list of Powerball winners on the Powerball web site. Ohio is a Mega Millions state that had four winners earlier this year that all used the trust method to claim their prize.
For those reading this, are there any changes/additions/deletions? It would be nice to know which states are the ones where a winner can be protected from having to identify themselves. If anyone knows of any other states where you can remain anomymous, post a reply. Maybe when one travels to those states you might be inclined to throw a couple extra dollars into the lottery for the upcoming draw(s)!
As far as California is concerned, it is impossible not to be identified. The lottery will report your name, the name and location of the place where the ticket was sold and the amount of the prize (including gross amount and net payment, if applicable). They don't release your hometown, which might be of some help if you win while visiting another part of the state or are from out of state. You can decline the press conference. In an interesting twist you can claim your ticket and say that you want to wait to determine your prize option, cash or annuity. (Note: this is not a debate about cash versus annuity, rather a discussion on ways to keep your name out of the news.) A person did this when claiming a July Super Lotto Plus Jackpot of $110 million. It has been over 60 days since he made his claim and there hasn't been any public mention made by the lottery if this person took the cash or the annuity.
And I'm not trying to fight, but ALL states allow corporations and trusts formed by the winners to claim lottery prizes. And, you can make all corporations and trusts so that the real owner's names are hidden.
From the California lottery code:
5. ASSIGNMENT OF PRIZE TO A REVOCABLE TRUST DURING THE LIFE OF THE WINNER
a. During the winner’s lifetime, the winner may assign his or her rights to all or a portion of a prize to a qualifying trust which is a revocable living trust established by the winner for the benefit of the winner as a beneficiary and governed by the laws of the State of California.
And you can always make corporations so that the true owner's names are hidden. But...to the lottery, the trust or corporation is the bearer of the winning ticket.
For example,
I form Winning Corporation in the country of Switzerland, which has super secret laws about privacy.
Winning Corporation owns XYZ Corp in Texas.
I have XYZ Corp form a trust in Texas. and instruct the bank's trust officer to walk into the lottery headquarters and claim the winning prize.
Legal, totally hidden, the only downside is a lot of legal paperwork.
Trusts are usually used because you can shield the family from taxes if you die suddenly, and you can keep the winner's name secret.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trusts
This is an area that lotterys are sooner or later going to have to deal with, because a lot of people want the winner's names to be public, but states themselves dont have the authority to do by themselves.
tmcdill...regarding your response, I thought the exact same thing until I came across the following:
Claimant Status: Prize winnings may be paid to natural persons or to business entities, including for profit or non-profit corporations and charitable organizations, subject to lottery rules and regulations. The Director shall have the discretion to require a business entity to provide the name of a natural person to whom the prize winnings may be paid.
What I think the lottery is referring to in the Assingnment of Prize information outlined above is the yearly distribution of an annuity payment to a revocable living trust. I am not a lawyer and like you I don't want to start a fight, but promote a discussion. What I am thinking is the lottery says to claim the prize you have to identify a natural person. That person can assign their rights to the prize winnings to a revocable living trust.
Mind you, I hope you are right! That's why should I win the jackpot one of the first steps would be a visit to a lawyer who could sort through these issues!!
Quote: Originally posted by CA LotteryGuy on Oct 10, 2006
tmcdill...regarding your response, I thought the exact same thing until I came across the following:
Claimant Status: Prize winnings may be paid to natural persons or to business entities, including for profit or non-profit corporations and charitable organizations, subject to lottery rules and regulations. The Director shall have the discretion to require a business entity to provide the name of a natural person to whom the prize winnings may be paid.
What I think the lottery is referring to in the Assingnment of Prize information outlined above is the yearly distribution of an annuity payment to a revocable living trust. I am not a lawyer and like you I don't want to start a fight, but promote a discussion. What I am thinking is the lottery says to claim the prize you have to identify a natural person. That person can assign their rights to the prize winnings to a revocable living trust.
Mind you, I hope you are right! That's why should I win the jackpot one of the first steps would be a visit to a lawyer who could sort through these issues!!
They'd lose that in court.
The Missouri Lottery just lost a case where they changed the period for online tickets from 1 year to 6 months.
The person had a winning lotto ticket from Missouri and moved out of state. During that time, Missouri changed the time from 1 year to 6 months.
The winner tried to claim the ticket, but the Missouri Lottery Commission said 'no way, we are the sole maker of rules for the lottery in this state, and we changed the rules'.
The courts said no, you are not. And gave the Lottery Commission the big thump. Lottery Commissions make lots of rules, but a lot of them arent legal.
A lot of states dont ask "cash option" or "annuity" because there was an irs ruling a few years ago that said that the winner should get 60 days to decide. Some states dont know about this, but Texas , where I live, specifically said that the IRS ruling doesnt apply to them, and they ignore it.
States think they are kings, until you get a federal judge to read the law to them. Most lottery winners dont care, and dont put a lot of forethought into it, I;'m afraid.
Now, pardon me, I need to run out and buy my Megamillions tickets for tonight still. :)
For the sake of discussion, why do you say they would lose that in court? The California Lottery says, these are the rules of our game. If you win you must identfiy yourself. You can claim it as a corporation, but you must provide the name of a natural person. Nothing against the law there. I don't see this to be illegal as long as they enforce the rule to everyone and it doesn't violate any exsiting Federal Law. Also should you try to fight this all thoughts of being anonymous are out the window.
The issue you brought up regarding Missouri changing the time to claim a ticket, well it seems like the right answer was given by the court.
As far as the IRS ruling regarding the 60 day issue, each state took their own approach to the ruling. Some states (Texas and New York I think) still make you select at the time of purchase. Other states (Massachusetts for example) make it 60 days from the date of the draw while others (California for one) make it 60 days from the date of your claim. These are states choosing to apply Federal Laws as they see fit for their residents. I don't think they are ignoring it or don't know about it, rather they choose to follow the a certain course of action and then set rules for their lottery. Yes I may be too idealistic!!
Good luck on your Mega Millions ticket! If a winner comes from the Plano Texas area, might we see a challange to the lottery regarding staying anonymous?
The Lottery is more fun when, even when you lose, at least you can see who did win (hopefully someone you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!), and it's interesting to read the story behind the ticket purchase i.e. "I just wanted to get a cup of coffee and I played 1 ticket just for the heck of it..." and often the escapades of the winner afterward. If you're afraid of winning then don't play for big jackpots.
So you name a (paid) legal guardian (lawyer, 'spokesperson') of the trust to take the winnings in his name, he takes his cut (after taxes), and you take the rest from the trust.
Quote: Originally posted by LckyLary on Oct 10, 2006
The Lottery is more fun when, even when you lose, at least you can see who did win (hopefully someone you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!), and it's interesting to read the story behind the ticket purchase i.e. "I just wanted to get a cup of coffee and I played 1 ticket just for the heck of it..." and often the escapades of the winner afterward. If you're afraid of winning then don't play for big jackpots.
'(hopefully you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!')
YOU are the reason folks want to remain anonymous !
Quote: Originally posted by LckyLary on Oct 10, 2006
The Lottery is more fun when, even when you lose, at least you can see who did win (hopefully someone you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!), and it's interesting to read the story behind the ticket purchase i.e. "I just wanted to get a cup of coffee and I played 1 ticket just for the heck of it..." and often the escapades of the winner afterward. If you're afraid of winning then don't play for big jackpots.
(hopefully someone you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!),
And I would tell you where to put your share of the jackpot
Quote: Originally posted by guesser on Oct 10, 2006
So you name a (paid) legal guardian (lawyer, 'spokesperson') of the trust to take the winnings in his name, he takes his cut (after taxes), and you take the rest from the trust.
Or is that not a viable option ?
I'm guessing that wouldn't work. The state wants the name of the winner, not the winner's representative. If you have somebody claim the prize as the winner and then they give the money to you, it will be a gift that's subject to gift taxes and that would be after they had already paid income tax.
Quote: Originally posted by tmcdill on Oct 10, 2006
They'd lose that in court.
The Missouri Lottery just lost a case where they changed the period for online tickets from 1 year to 6 months.
The person had a winning lotto ticket from Missouri and moved out of state. During that time, Missouri changed the time from 1 year to 6 months.
The winner tried to claim the ticket, but the Missouri Lottery Commission said 'no way, we are the sole maker of rules for the lottery in this state, and we changed the rules'.
The courts said no, you are not. And gave the Lottery Commission the big thump. Lottery Commissions make lots of rules, but a lot of them arent legal.
A lot of states dont ask "cash option" or "annuity" because there was an irs ruling a few years ago that said that the winner should get 60 days to decide. Some states dont know about this, but Texas , where I live, specifically said that the IRS ruling doesnt apply to them, and they ignore it.
States think they are kings, until you get a federal judge to read the law to them. Most lottery winners dont care, and dont put a lot of forethought into it, I;'m afraid.
Now, pardon me, I need to run out and buy my Megamillions tickets for tonight still. :)
Unless the rules violate the law, the lottery commissions can pretty much make whatever rules they want to. Missouri didn't lose the case because they can't change the claim period, they lost because they can't change the rules after the fact. Somebody who bought a ticket when the claim period was one year has one year to make their claim because that's the rule that was in effect when they bought their ticket.
Quote: Originally posted by KY Floyd on Oct 11, 2006
I'm guessing that wouldn't work. The state wants the name of the winner, not the winner's representative. If you have somebody claim the prize as the winner and then they give the money to you, it will be a gift that's subject to gift taxes and that would be after they had already paid income tax.
It is fun to read about the big winners and it is good advertising for the lottery, but I still believe winners should be allowed to remain anonymous by using a trust.
Today is the one year anniversary of the Oklahoma Lottery. The first scratch off tickets were sold on the morning of October 12, 2005, and Pick 3 drawings started the following month.
I have enjoyed playing the Oklahoma Lottery for the past year.
Lottery is a game, much like hollywood stars exist for our entertainment. A lottery winner gets spotlight status same as an actor in a show. The lottery show, gets great promotion from its winners. I'm surprised they don't take greater advantage. Truth is, we'd do more for less. We are lottery crazy. If they said we had to live in a certain home, and travel teh state representing the lottery, we'd still pay to play.
While personally, based on experience and observation, I'd prefer winners to be anonymous for their own well being, I believe State Lotteries and multistate lotteries could easily make winners more public. We play a game where our dollar signs us up. We are still playing a game by someone else's rules.
Quote: Originally posted by heal3r on Oct 16, 2006
Lottery is a game, much like hollywood stars exist for our entertainment. A lottery winner gets spotlight status same as an actor in a show. The lottery show, gets great promotion from its winners. I'm surprised they don't take greater advantage. Truth is, we'd do more for less. We are lottery crazy. If they said we had to live in a certain home, and travel teh state representing the lottery, we'd still pay to play.
While personally, based on experience and observation, I'd prefer winners to be anonymous for their own well being, I believe State Lotteries and multistate lotteries could easily make winners more public. We play a game where our dollar signs us up. We are still playing a game by someone else's rules.
Most everything we do in life is by someone else's rules, except for two things I can think of:
I am certain NH allows winners to remain anonymous whether or not they state it. The reason is because in May I posted that when I lived in NH a person could not remain anonymous and copied the rules onto my post. Then I read an article announcing that someone in NH won $85 million playing PB and they decided to remain anonymous and I apologized. I'd have to go all the way back and check my posts, but I am very sure I read in the paper that the lottery in NH announced they would honor the winner's request.
So I guess it's not black & white and can be challenged by the winner. We've had many discussions on this subject. I definitely would want to remain anonymous, mainly for my safety, but if my picture appeared in the paper, I'd have to deal with it. Celebrities often hire bodyguards. (What a way to live!) Not everyone wants the attention. There are many well known Hollywood people and rock stars living around here, but they try to keep a very low profile.
I hope some day that's my biggest problem in life.
hey and put their picture on the phone book with their address so they can be called from every where , you know once you got money , every tom paul and tim is your cousin, and they all need something,,, hey senator here i am ,
I think its a good thing ...you should have your name and town posted up online. It gives other people the hope that one day it will be them getting all the phone calls from long lost relatives... friends and whoever else that might feel the urge to call you ask for that small personal loan. Its the rockstar status we all want, show me the winning ticket and i'll deal with everything else that comes with it later. thanks
RSU trust company
I think that all states should allow lottery winners their anonymity. I would have major reservations about having my name and winnings posted somewhere for everyone to see. Buuuutttt....If that's what is required to receive the money, I guess I would have to accept having my name out there....right before moving out of town....
This can be done by having a copy of the check or debit card that was used to purchase lottery tickets, he said.
Are there any states that allow you to buy lottery tickets with a check?
I totally disagree. I think winners should be named, photos taken, home phone numbers published, addresses given out, and maps to their home distributed along the highway as well as that 10 foot tall bull's eye they tack on your house after you won the lottory. Just the bull's eye alone is not getting the job done. People are still claiming jackpots.
Hahaha.....NO! That's too much.
I personally can't wait for the issue to be resolved once and for all. Eventually a winner will warn the lottery not to release his/her name for security reasons, the lottery will refuse and the winner dies or is seriously injured. The lawsuit resulting from such an act will cause the estate of the winner to have more to give out and give a wake up call to lotteries exposing winners to potential crime.
Winners should always have the final say in how monies should be distributed not the state.
wpb
Exactly. This is just another example of what can happen when someone who is absolutely clueless gets involved in something they have no business being involved in.
I think anyone and everyone has to right to remain anonymous if they win the jackpot. Not everyone wants that "rockstar status" that wreakshavock mentioned. I'd want to walk around with a big bankroll and have people in awe and "wonder" what the heck I do for a living, and how I got my money. I don't want a soul knowing how much I have in my bank account. It's no one's business!!!
Perhaps the government and the state should do a "background check" when they're taking out taxes to make sure someone doesn't owe backtaxes or child support. I don't agree with the person's name, address, photo and any relavant information given out to the public. Just because the person has money now doesn't mean the world needs to know.
MORNING PEOPLE : i agree with surge , there must be a way that you can remain anonymous to the public safety, while i understand that some people might owe thousands in child support, i feel that the lottery commission should know who they are paying this money to, they should be able to do a proper background check on people, i feel if you make a winners name public you are also makeing a way for them to be victums to crimes , just remember mr senator , it could be you or your family who win some money , do you want to be a target ? IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU ."
"Deadbeat dads who owe thousands of dollars in child support could avoid paying it if they won the lottery and created a trust, Jolley said."
Lottery winners might be illegal drug users, cheats and sneaks too, I say slap on a rubber glove and do a strip search. In addition to the bullseye on the house and the billboards on the interstate with detailed directions to the winners house. Yes, the public would feel so much better about the lottery then Mr. Jolley. Good to see you're not wasting time and taxpayer money in the Okla. legislature. If that's the biggest problem in Oklahoma now, the anonymity of the many millions of lottery winners, then I just may have to consider moving there.
I'm guessing that the statement is the result of a stupid politician meaning that it would be okay for a trust to claim a prize if the trust was formed before the ticket was purchased. The article suggests that his issue is with people forming a trust specifically to claim a prize they have already won. Since trusts and corporations are already legal entities they have the right to buy and own lottery tickets, as well as other property. Of course that begs the question of what his legislation would require as proof that individuals had bought and legally own the tickets they were submitting to claim prizes. As a side note, I'm sure the lottery agents will be thrilled that their records not only have to note that the check or debit card was used to buy a lottery ticket, but will also have to note *which* lottery ticket was bought.
As far as keeping the lottery honest and collecting child support from deadbeat parents, there's no reason the rules couldn't require a check of the individuals who hold the ticket while still keeping their names and other personal information private. I believe some states already do this, as I'm pretty sure I recall stories about winners who apparently didn't form a trust but still remained anonymous. Perhaps Jolley should submit a bill that makes it illegal, and sets the penalties, for any lottery employee to disclose information that is supposed to be confidential.
We should have right to remain annonyimpus because of being harassed by lots of deadbeats and stalkers. The child support stuff is bull
The law that allows trusts to be created is federal, not state. Another attempt by a hick state legislator to get some ink with a crazy press release.
The only law change that would help lotteries is to exempt lottery winners from state ,and especially, federal taxes. The amount of new people playing the lottery would greatly offset the slight amount of revenue lost.
The Delaware Lottery, while allowing anonymous winners, will keep after tax winnings if you have a state judgement against you for back taxes or child support.
If that law passes I say boycott Oklahoma's lottery. That will be easy for me because I don't live anywhere near it. Proposals like this make me want to
.
In Delaware, the lottery knows the identity of the winner, but keeps it anomymous. If a trust is created for the lottery winner, the trust official walks into the lottery office on the winner's behalf, and the lottery pays to the trust, which is a legal entity like a corporation. The lottery office has no idea who the actual winner is.....as for legal purposes, it's the trust that's been created.
I believe Delaware and Kansas are the only 2 states that I've heard of that allow winners to remain anomymous.
tmcdill...there is a third state that allows winners to remain anomymous, Maryland. This occured with a Mega Millions jackpot winner from July of this year.
As far as trusts are concerned, I think there are a few states where you can use this method to keep a winners identity secret: New Hampshire, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma (for now) and Pennsylvania. I gathered some of this information from the list of Powerball winners on the Powerball web site. Ohio is a Mega Millions state that had four winners earlier this year that all used the trust method to claim their prize.
For those reading this, are there any changes/additions/deletions? It would be nice to know which states are the ones where a winner can be protected from having to identify themselves. If anyone knows of any other states where you can remain anomymous, post a reply. Maybe when one travels to those states you might be inclined to throw a couple extra dollars into the lottery for the upcoming draw(s)!
As far as California is concerned, it is impossible not to be identified. The lottery will report your name, the name and location of the place where the ticket was sold and the amount of the prize (including gross amount and net payment, if applicable). They don't release your hometown, which might be of some help if you win while visiting another part of the state or are from out of state. You can decline the press conference. In an interesting twist you can claim your ticket and say that you want to wait to determine your prize option, cash or annuity. (Note: this is not a debate about cash versus annuity, rather a discussion on ways to keep your name out of the news.) A person did this when claiming a July Super Lotto Plus Jackpot of $110 million. It has been over 60 days since he made his claim and there hasn't been any public mention made by the lottery if this person took the cash or the annuity.
Thanks for the good information.
And I'm not trying to fight, but ALL states allow corporations and trusts formed by the winners to claim lottery prizes. And, you can make all corporations and trusts so that the real owner's names are hidden.
From the California lottery code:
5. ASSIGNMENT OF PRIZE TO A REVOCABLE TRUST DURING THE LIFE OF
THE WINNER
a. During the winner’s lifetime, the winner may assign his or her rights to all or
a portion of a prize to a qualifying trust which is a revocable living trust
established by the winner for the benefit of the winner as a beneficiary and
governed by the laws of the State of California.
And you can always make corporations so that the true owner's names are hidden. But...to the lottery, the trust or corporation is the bearer of the winning ticket.
For example,
I form Winning Corporation in the country of Switzerland, which has super secret laws about privacy.
Winning Corporation owns XYZ Corp in Texas.
I have XYZ Corp form a trust in Texas. and instruct the bank's trust officer to walk into the lottery headquarters and claim the winning prize.
Legal, totally hidden, the only downside is a lot of legal paperwork.
Trusts are usually used because you can shield the family from taxes if you die suddenly, and you can keep the winner's name secret.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trusts
This is an area that lotterys are sooner or later going to have to deal with, because a lot of people want the winner's names to be public, but states themselves dont have the authority to do by themselves.
tmcdill...regarding your response, I thought the exact same thing until I came across the following:
Claimant Status: Prize winnings may be paid to natural persons or to business entities, including for profit or non-profit corporations and charitable organizations, subject to lottery rules and regulations. The Director shall have the discretion to require a business entity to provide the name of a natural person to whom the prize winnings may be paid.
What I think the lottery is referring to in the Assingnment of Prize information outlined above is the yearly distribution of an annuity payment to a revocable living trust. I am not a lawyer and like you I don't want to start a fight, but promote a discussion. What I am thinking is the lottery says to claim the prize you have to identify a natural person. That person can assign their rights to the prize winnings to a revocable living trust.
Mind you, I hope you are right! That's why should I win the jackpot one of the first steps would be a visit to a lawyer who could sort through these issues!!
They'd lose that in court.
The Missouri Lottery just lost a case where they changed the period for online tickets from 1 year to 6 months.
The person had a winning lotto ticket from Missouri and moved out of state. During that time, Missouri changed the time from 1 year to 6 months.
The winner tried to claim the ticket, but the Missouri Lottery Commission said 'no way, we are the sole maker of rules for the lottery in this state, and we changed the rules'.
The courts said no, you are not. And gave the Lottery Commission the big thump. Lottery Commissions make lots of rules, but a lot of them arent legal.
A lot of states dont ask "cash option" or "annuity" because there was an irs ruling a few years ago that said that the winner should get 60 days to decide. Some states dont know about this, but Texas , where I live, specifically said that the IRS ruling doesnt apply to them, and they ignore it.
States think they are kings, until you get a federal judge to read the law to them. Most lottery winners dont care, and dont put a lot of forethought into it, I;'m afraid.
Now, pardon me, I need to run out and buy my Megamillions tickets for tonight still. :)
For the sake of discussion, why do you say they would lose that in court? The California Lottery says, these are the rules of our game. If you win you must identfiy yourself. You can claim it as a corporation, but you must provide the name of a natural person. Nothing against the law there. I don't see this to be illegal as long as they enforce the rule to everyone and it doesn't violate any exsiting Federal Law. Also should you try to fight this all thoughts of being anonymous are out the window.
The issue you brought up regarding Missouri changing the time to claim a ticket, well it seems like the right answer was given by the court.
As far as the IRS ruling regarding the 60 day issue, each state took their own approach to the ruling. Some states (Texas and New York I think) still make you select at the time of purchase. Other states (Massachusetts for example) make it 60 days from the date of the draw while others (California for one) make it 60 days from the date of your claim. These are states choosing to apply Federal Laws as they see fit for their residents. I don't think they are ignoring it or don't know about it, rather they choose to follow the a certain course of action and then set rules for their lottery. Yes I may be too idealistic!!
Good luck on your Mega Millions ticket! If a winner comes from the Plano Texas area, might we see a challange to the lottery regarding staying anonymous?
The Lottery is more fun when, even when you lose, at least you can see who did win (hopefully someone you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!), and it's interesting to read the story behind the ticket purchase i.e. "I just wanted to get a cup of coffee and I played 1 ticket just for the heck of it..." and often the escapades of the winner afterward. If you're afraid of winning then don't play for big jackpots.
South Carolina and North Dakota are also listed on Powerball's site.
So you name a (paid) legal guardian (lawyer, 'spokesperson') of the trust to take the winnings in his name, he takes his cut (after taxes), and you take the rest from the trust.
Or is that not a viable option ?
'(hopefully you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!')
YOU are the reason folks want to remain anonymous !
(hopefully someone you know and you've been kind to when they were poor!),
And I would tell you where to put your share of the jackpot
I'm guessing that wouldn't work. The state wants the name of the winner, not the winner's representative. If you have somebody claim the prize as the winner and then they give the money to you, it will be a gift that's subject to gift taxes and that would be after they had already paid income tax.
Unless the rules violate the law, the lottery commissions can pretty much make whatever rules they want to. Missouri didn't lose the case because they can't change the claim period, they lost because they can't change the rules after the fact. Somebody who bought a ticket when the claim period was one year has one year to make their claim because that's the rule that was in effect when they bought their ticket.
Yeah, I kinda figured the 'gifting' taxes, etc.
Best thing to do:
Win.
Move.
Or actually:
Win
Disconnect phone
Move
Claim winnings.
It is fun to read about the big winners and it is good advertising for the lottery, but I still believe winners should be allowed to remain anonymous by using a trust.
Today is the one year anniversary of the Oklahoma Lottery. The first scratch off tickets were sold on the morning of October 12, 2005, and Pick 3 drawings started the following month.
I have enjoyed playing the Oklahoma Lottery for the past year.
Lottery is a game, much like hollywood stars exist for our entertainment. A lottery winner gets spotlight status same as an actor in a show. The lottery show, gets great promotion from its winners. I'm surprised they don't take greater advantage. Truth is, we'd do more for less. We are lottery crazy. If they said we had to live in a certain home, and travel teh state representing the lottery, we'd still pay to play.
While personally, based on experience and observation, I'd prefer winners to be anonymous for their own well being, I believe State Lotteries and multistate lotteries could easily make winners more public. We play a game where our dollar signs us up. We are still playing a game by someone else's rules.
Most everything we do in life is by someone else's rules, except for two things I can think of:
1) Commit crimes
2) What we do AFTER we win the PB Jackpot.
I am certain NH allows winners to remain anonymous whether or not they state it. The reason is because in May I posted that when I lived in NH a person could not remain anonymous and copied the rules onto my post. Then I read an article announcing that someone in NH won $85 million playing PB and they decided to remain anonymous and I apologized. I'd have to go all the way back and check my posts, but I am very sure I read in the paper that the lottery in NH announced they would honor the winner's request.
So I guess it's not black & white and can be challenged by the winner. We've had many discussions on this subject. I definitely would want to remain anonymous, mainly for my safety, but if my picture appeared in the paper, I'd have to deal with it. Celebrities often hire bodyguards. (What a way to live!) Not everyone wants the attention. There are many well known Hollywood people and rock stars living around here, but they try to keep a very low profile.
I hope some day that's my biggest problem in life.
hey and put their picture on the phone book with their address so they can be called from every where , you know once you got money , every tom paul and tim is your cousin, and they all need something,,,
hey senator here i am ,